Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record and sign the Minutes of the meetings of the Council held on 14 February and 5 March 2013

The Minutes (copies of which had been circulated) of the meetings held on 14 February and 5 March 2013 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Mayor.

To receive announcements from the Mayor.

The Mayor announced that since the last ordinary Council Meeting on 14 February 2013 she had appeared with Peter Kay in his video for the Children in Need programme.

On 1 March she had visited Mersey Vale Primary School, to collect a cheque for £151.35 for her charity, and attended the Women’s World Prayer Day at the United Reform Church Buxton Road. On the same day, the Ashton on Mersey Show Band performed at the Town Hall in aid of her charity, and she thanked those Councillors that had attended.

On 8 March she had morning tea with Mrs Pan, the Chinese Consulate’s wife and representative, and later went to Jump space in Edgeley, a fantastic facility for young and older people with Disabilities. Later that night she had attended the Mayor of Oldham’s Ball.

On 16 March she had opened the new home bargains store on the Peel Centre, and in the evening she attended Romiley forum for NK theatre’s production of Quadraphonia.

On 25 March she had opened Brinnington’s Arts Festival, an annual event which culminates with a lantern parade on the final evening. Later that day she had opened Robinson’s Breweries Visitor Centre and refurbished Brewery, a fantastic £9 million pound investment in Stockport, to celebrate the brewery being in the town centre for 175 years.

On 19 March she had opened the lift at the Wellsprings Centre, which now enabled them to use the top floor for training and access to computers. Later the same day she had a tour of Stockport Academy, and was impressed with the school, the young people and the staff. That evening she had attended the Mayor of Rochdale’s Ball.

The Mayor reported that her second Charity Abseil took place on 20 March when16 people took part followed by a St George’s Day event in the evening at Rainbow88.

On 21 March she had attended the district Scouts St George’s Day Parade at St Georges Church and on 23 March a group of French dancers from Fosbrooks visited the Town Hall. She had attended the induction of the new vicar of St Alban’s, St John’s and St Thomas’s at St Thomas’s Church and sailed on a canal boat on the Marple canal through to Poynton,

Finally she reported that she was delighted to announce that Stockport girl Leah McDerment has been named England Under-16 Basketball Player of the Year for 2012.

Councillors and officers to declare any interests which they may have in any of the items on the Summons for the meeting.

Councillors and officers were invited to declare any interests which they had in any of the items on the Summons for the meeting.

The following interests were declared:-

Personal Interests

To receive any questions from and provide answers to the public in relation to matters relevant to the Council’s activities.

Members of the public were invited to put questions to the Mayor and Councillors on matters within the powers and duties of the Council.

Five public questions were submitted.  Three public questions were submitted in advance of the meeting from questioners who were not present at the meeting and in accordance with the procedure for asking questions it was stated that written responses would be provided.

The fourth question related to the proposed changes by Borough Care to the wages and conditions of service of employees previously employed by Stockport Council. In response, the Leader of the Council stated that Borough Care was a private company and as such Stockport Council had no control over decisions made by it.

The fifth question related to the consultation in relation to Stockport’s bowling greens and the notices which had been posted at some bowling green’s stating the bowling green was to close. In response, the Leader of the Council stated that no decisions had been made in relation to the current consultation and encouraged those who used bowling green’s to express their views as part of the consultation.

To receive petitions, and by prior arrangement, receive delegations and presentations from members of the public, community groups or partnership organisations.

No such arrangements have been made for this meeting.

To consider a report of the Assistant Chief Executive (Policy, Strategy, Partnerships and Transformation).

The Executive Councillor (Supporting Communities) (Councillor Mark Weldon) submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) detailing a proposed Community Covenant which aimed to complement the Armed Forces Covenant at a local level and provided a voluntary statement of mutual support between a local civilian community and its local Armed Forces Community.

Lieutenant Colonel Richard Jordan, Commander of the 103^rd Regiment Royal Artillery (Volunteers), attended the meeting to address the Council in relation to Armed Forces Community Covenant which was followed by questions from Councillors.

The Mayor expressed thanks to Lieutenant Colonel Richard Jordan for his attendance and presentation.

RESOLVED – (62 for) That the Armed Forces Community Covenant be adopted.

(a)       Section 41 Spokespersons

The following councillors to answer questions (if any) on the business of the joint authorities:-

(b)       Greater Manchester Police and Crime Panel

Councillor Sue Derbyshire to answer questions (if any) on the business of the Greater Manchester Police and Crime Panel.

(c)     Greater Manchester Combined Authority

The following councillors to answer questions (if any) on the business of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee:-

(a)       Section 41 Spokespersons

There were no questions in relation to the business of the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority or the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority.

(b)       Greater Manchester Police and Crime Panel

There were no questions in relation to the business of the Greater Manchester Police and Crime Panel.

(c)        Greater Manchester Combined Authority

There were no questions in relation to the business of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority or the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee.

To consider a report of the Executive Councillor (Economic Development & Regeneration).

The Executive Councillor (Economic Development & Regeneration) (Councillor Iain Roberts) submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) detailing the outcome of the Planning Inspectorates Review of the Greater Manchester Joint Minerals Development Plan Document, and recommending that the Plan be approved for inclusion in the Local Development Framework.

RESOLVED – (62 for) That the Greater Manchester Joint Minerals Development Plan Document and subsequent chances to Stockport’s Local Development Framework Proposals Map be approved.

To receive a report from the Executive Leader and other members of the Executive on the conduct of Executive business since the last Council Meeting.

The Leader of the Council (Policy, Reform &Finance) (Councillor Sue Derbyshire) reported that in the last 12 months there had been £11.8m of investment in Stockport with 900 new jobs created and a further 620 retained. She reported that Baron Frankal of New Economy had called Stockport a major asset to the Greater Manchester economy.  She also stated that that week a local company had received confirmation that they had received a grant from the Regional Growth Fund of £2m, creating a further 150 jobs.

She reported that the redevelopment of the Grand Central car park was underway and last year Merseyway showed its highest footfall for a number of years. The Town Centre Team was bedding in, all of which suggested that Stockport was weathering the storm.

She added that a number of schools had recently been inspected by Ofsted.  Stockport was ranked 13th nationally in relation to good/outstanding schools.

She explained that a number of consultations were on-going in relation to changes to services and savings required whilst retaining the core of vital services.

She outlined changes agreed by the Group Leaders in relation to the governance of outside bodies. It was proposed to constitute a “Funding Committee” in addition to the “Contributors Committee” rather than appoint individual members to Boards such as Life Leisure, Stockport Homes etc.

The Executive Councillor (Lifelong Learning and Achievement) (Councillor Shan Alexander) reported that over 600 young people had attended an information event organised by the Council during National Apprenticeship Week. The event had been very successful and she had been delighted to attend. Those attending were able to meet face-to-face representatives from local colleges, training providers, employers, the National Apprenticeship Service and the Council's Services for Young People to discuss what they can do after leaving school or college. She reported that the Council had also been recognised for being an outstanding employer of apprentices and thanked all the staff involved.

She also reported that the Pendlebury Centre following a two day of inspection had been assessed as outstanding in all four areas and on behalf of the Council she congratulated the staff and pupils.

The Deputy Leader of the Council and Executive Councillor (Governance and Corporate Services) (Councillor Martin Candler) referred to the Council Tax demand letter. He reported that it had been hoped to stage the distribution of the letter but due to issues with the printer this had not happened. He congratulated the Revenue and Benefits Team and the Contact Centre on the way they dealt with the situation to ensure that calls from members of the public were dealt with effectively and that he had requested Managers to thank those staff involved on behalf of the council. He also reported that Stockport was the third best collector of Council Tax in the North of England.

The Executive Councillor (Health & Wellbeing) (Councillor John Pantall) updated the Council Meeting in relation to the transfrer of the Public Health function to the Council.

He reported upon the recent outbreak of measles and commented upon the steps being taken to reach people in the 10-16 age range who missed immunisation because of scares regarding the MMR vaccine. Within Stockport during the last four months there had been nine cases of measles, six in one month.

He reported that the statutory Health and Wellbeing Board was now in place and there was a need to share information across AGMA. There was also a need for decision making to be clear and transparent and both HealthWatch and Scrutiny had an important part to play.

To answer questions from Councillors addressed to the Executive Leader or other members of the Executive, in accordance with Council Meeting Procedure Rule 11.

The Executive Councillor (Lifelong Learning and Achievement); the Deputy Leader of the Council and Executive Councillor (Governance and Corporate Services), the Executive Councillor (Health and Wellbeing), the Executive Councillors (Public Realm), the Executive Councillor (Economic Development and Regeneration) and the Executive Councillor (Supporting Communities) answered questions relating to the business of the Executive in accordance with Council Meeting Procedure Rule 11.

To receive the Minutes of the Executive held on 18 February and 2 April 2013 and the record of executive decisions taken since the last Council Meeting, (schedule enclosed, decisions previously circulated) and consider any recommendations they contain.

The Mayor declared the Minutes of the Executive Meetings (copies of which had been circulated) on 18 February and 2 April 2013 and the record of executive decision taken (copies of which were circulated) since the last meeting of the Council to be duly received.

To receive a report from the Chairs of the Scrutiny Committees on the conduct of Scrutiny business.

To receive a report from the Chairs of the Scrutiny Committees on the conduct of Scrutiny business.

There were no reports from the Chairs of the Scrutiny Committees on the conduct of their business since the last Council Meeting.

To answer questions from Councillors addressed to the Scrutiny Chairs, in accordance with Council Meeting Procedure Rule 11.

There were no questions relating to the business of the Scrutiny Committees in accordance with Council Meeting Procedure Rule 11.

To receive the Minutes of the following Scrutiny Committees:-

The Mayor declared the Minutes of the following Scrutiny Committees (copies of which had been circulated with the Summons) to be duly received:-

To consider the Scrutiny Annual Report 2012/13.

The Chair of the Scrutiny Co-ordination Committee (Councillor Ben Alexander) submitted the Scrutiny Annual Report for 2012/13 (copies of which had been circulated) summarising the work of the Scrutiny Committees during the current Municipal Year.

RESOLVED – (58 for) That the report be noted.

There was no report from the Chair of the Licensing, Environment and Safety Committee on the conduct of its business since the last Council Meeting.

The Chair of the Planning and Highways Regulation Committee (Councillor Lenny Grice) reported upon the Review of Outcomes tour that had taken place on Friday 15 March 2013. He commented that three of the buildings visited were important to Stockport’s heritage and needed to be conserved, McNairs Court in Marple, The Reform Club in Heaton Mersey and The Royal Oak Brewery on Hillgate. This had been achieved by allowing a degree of new build to incorporate the existing properties to secure living accommodation and the long term future of these listed buildings.

He reported that the tour had also visited Warwick Court on Cheadle High Street, Stockport Grammar School, Alliance House in Cheadle Hulme and the new Woodley Sports Centre, and these developments had also been achieved through a mutual respect between the Officers, Councillors and Developers.

To answer questions from Councillors addressed to the Chairs of Ordinary and Area Committees, in accordance with Council Meeting Procedure Rule 11.

There were no questions relating to the business of the Ordinary, Area and Ward Committees in accordance with Council Meeting Procedure Rule 11.

To receive the minutes of the following Ordinary, Area and Ward Committees:-

Ordinary Committees

Area Committees

Ward Committee

The Mayor declared the Minutes of the following ‘Ordinary’, Area and Ward Committees (copies of which had been circulated with the Summons) to be duly received:-

Ordinary Committees

Area Committees

Ward Committee

This Council Meeting notes –

·           The cost of living continues to rise with inflation consistently remaining higher than the Bank of England’s target of 2%, energy bills are rising, water bills are rising and fuel costs are rising.

·           The National Minimum Wage, introduced by the Labour Government in 1998, made work pay and improved the lives of millions of people across Britain.

·           The introduction of a Living Wage by local authorities and other employers.

·           That as of January 2013, 458 contracted Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council employees and 193 casual workers were paid less than the £7.45 per hour Living Wage. 95% of these employees are based in Stockport’s schools.

This Council Meeting further notes –

·           That workers in Greater Manchester earn some of the lowest wages in the country. Hourly wages for the lowest 10% of workers have fallen by 50p (7.5%) over the past two years.  Annual wages for part-time workers have fallen by an average of 19.8% (£619), and for full-time workers wages have fallen by 6.1% (£904) in the last two years.

·           In Greater Manchester, 40% of children grow up in poverty. Brinnington and Central ward has a child poverty rate of 45%. 58% of children growing up in poverty have a parent who works.

·           Workers in local government have the lowest earnings of any other public sector workers.

·           Over half of each pound local government workers earn is re-spent in local economy.

·           That organisations that have introduced a Living Wage have seen improvements in staff morale, retention and productivity whilst also seeing decreases in staff absenteeism.

·           If the National Minimum Wage had kept pace with salaries of CEOs in FTSE 100 companies since 1999, it would now stand at £18.89 per hour.

·           The pay scales for the Chief Executive of Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council are between £147,588 and £170,051.

This Council Meeting believes –

·           That a person should be paid enough to live decently and to adequately provide for their family.

·           That Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council should be an exemplar employer.

This Council Meeting therefore requests –

·           That Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council adopts a Living Wage policy for its employees and pays a minimum hourly rate of £7.45.

·           That this new minimum rate should be applied to all directly employed staff as soon as is practicable.

·           That the Council undertakes to work with Local Authority Maintained schools in Stockport to enable schools to pay their staff the Living Wage by the start of the academic year 2014/15, if not sooner.

·           That the Council undertakes to encourage schools that are not Local Authority Maintained (Academies, Voluntary Aided, Free schools) to be encouraged to adopt the Living Wage for employees.

·           That the Council investigates how a requirement for contractors to pay the Living Wage can be introduced into the Council’s procurement policies.

·           That the Living Wage rate paid by the Council is uprated annually in-line with the recommendations of the Living Wage Foundation.

·           That the Council works with local employers to encourage them to adopt a Living Wage for their employees.

Moved by:                  Councillor Alexander Ganotis

Seconded by:           Councillor David Sedgwick

MOVED AND SECONDED - This Council Meeting notes –

·           The cost of living continues to rise with inflation consistently remaining higher than the Bank of England’s target of 2%, energy bills are rising, water bills are rising and fuel costs are rising.

·           The National Minimum Wage, introduced by the Labour Government in 1998, made work pay and improved the lives of millions of people across Britain.

·           The introduction of a Living Wage by local authorities and other employers.

·           That as of January 2013, 458 contracted Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council employees and 193 casual workers were paid less than the £7.45 per hour Living Wage. 95% of these employees are based in Stockport’s schools.

This Council Meeting further notes –

·           That workers in Greater Manchester earn some of the lowest wages in the country. Hourly wages for the lowest 10% of workers have fallen by 50p (7.5%) over the past two years.  Annual wages for part-time workers have fallen by an average of 19.8% (£619), and for full-time workers wages have fallen by 6.1% (£904) in the last two years.

·           In Greater Manchester, 40% of children grow up in poverty. Brinnington and Central ward has a child poverty rate of 45%. 58% of children growing up in poverty have a parent who works.

·           Workers in local government have the lowest earnings of any other public sector workers.

·           Over half of each pound local government workers earn is re-spent in local economy.

·           That organisations that have introduced a Living Wage have seen improvements in staff morale, retention and productivity whilst also seeing decreases in staff absenteeism.

·           If the National Minimum Wage had kept pace with salaries of CEOs in FTSE 100 companies since 1999, it would now stand at £18.89 per hour.

·           The pay scales for the Chief Executive of Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council are between £147,588 and £170,051.

This Council Meeting believes –

·           That a person should be paid enough to live decently and to adequately provide for their family.

·           That Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council should be an exemplar employer.

This Council Meeting therefore requests –

·           That Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council adopts a Living Wage policy for its employees and pays a minimum hourly rate of £7.45.

·           That this new minimum rate should be applied to all directly employed staff as soon as is practicable.

·           That the Council undertakes to work with Local Authority Maintained schools in Stockport to enable schools to pay their staff the Living Wage by the start of the academic year 2014/15, if not sooner.

·           That the Council undertakes to encourage schools that are not Local Authority Maintained (Academies, Voluntary Aided, Free schools) to be encouraged to adopt the Living Wage for employees.

·           That the Council investigates how a requirement for contractors to pay the Living Wage can be introduced into the Council’s procurement policies.

·           That the Living Wage rate paid by the Council is uprated annually in-line with the recommendations of the Living Wage Foundation.

·           That the Council works with local employers to encourage them to adopt a Living Wage for their employees.

AMENDMENT MOVED AND SECONDED - Delete all bullet points after “This Council Meeting further notes” and insert the following words:

“that, whilst our schools and suppliers should be encouraged to pay their staff appropriately, there are considerable logistical and financial difficulties that would result from any attempt by the Council to impose the Living Wage upon them.”

Delete all bullet points after “This Council Meeting therefore requests” and insert the following bullet points:

• That Spinal Points 4 and 5 be deleted from our pay scales, to take effect as quickly as practicable; and
• That an all-party ‘Task and Finish’ group be formed to consider the further implementation of a Living Wage policy.”

For the amendment 62,

AMENDMENT CARRIED

The amendment was then put as the substantive motion and it was

RESOLVED – (62 for) This Council Meeting notes –

·           The cost  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.(i)

This Council Meeting:

·           Recognises the Greater Manchester Business Survey‘s findings that high parking charges are a negative feature of Stockport’s local economy.

·           Realises the importance of low, competitive parking charges to encourage residents to shop locally, support Stockport’s businesses and help reduce the number of empty shops in the town centre.

·           Welcomes the well-intentioned and overdue decision to introduce an hourly parking charge to encourage short stay visits in specific car parks.

·           Notes that this decision follows the demands of some local traders and the urging of the Conservative Group at the previous Council Meeting for charges to be reduced.

·           Regrets that once again there is no properly targeted strategy in place to use limited free parking to specifically drive additional footfall in the District Centres.

·           Urges the Council Executive to correct the anomalies which mean a number of two or three hour stays are now more expensive in car parks across the borough, to provide some limited time’s free parking in district centres and to ensure that low, shopper and business friendly, parking charges remain a priority.  

Moved by:                  Councillor Paul Bellis

Seconded by:           Councillor Lisa Walker

MOVED AND SECONDED - This Council Meeting:

·           Recognises the Greater Manchester Business Survey‘s findings that high parking charges are a negative feature of Stockport’s local economy.

·           Realises the importance of low, competitive parking charges to encourage residents to shop locally, support Stockport’s businesses and help reduce the number of empty shops in the town centre.

·           Welcomes the well-intentioned and overdue decision to introduce an hourly parking charge to encourage short stay visits in specific car parks.

·           Notes that this decision follows the demands of some local traders and the urging of the Conservative Group at the previous Council Meeting for charges to be reduced.

·           Regrets that once again there is no properly targeted strategy in place to use limited free parking to specifically drive additional footfall in the District Centres.

·           Urges the Council Executive to correct the anomalies which mean a number of two or three hour stays are now more expensive in car parks across the borough, to provide some limited time’s free parking in district centres and to ensure that low, shopper and business friendly, parking charges remain a priority.

AMENDMENT MOVED AND SECONDED - Delete all after “This Council Meeting” and replace with:

“recognises the Greater Manchester Business Survey’s findings that more businesses are satisfied (and fewer are dissatisfied) with the availability of parking in Stockport than across Greater Manchester.

This Council Meeting notes:

• that the Survey makes no reference whatsoever to parking charges; and
• the incorrect reference to parking charges contained in the resume of the Stockport Economic Alliance Task Force meeting in February that was considered by the Environment and Economy Scrutiny Committee on 21^st March 2013.

This Council Meeting regrets that this mistake was repeated in the original version of this motion.

This Council Meeting welcomes the Concluding Report of the GM Town Centres Project, considered by the GM Combined Authority on 11^th March 2013 which highlights car parking across Greater Manchester as “a common issue with different responses in different town centres”.

This Council Meeting further notes that the Concluding Report observes that “Reliable evidence on the impact and importance of free parking/reduced fees, and any measurable benefits to town centre businesses, needs to be collected by Districts and shared”, which will “enable individual Districts to make more informed decisions locally.

This Council Meeting therefore resolves to continue to participate fully with our GM partners to learn lessons from their schemes to ensure that any future free parking or reduced fee schemes have the best chance of achieving benefits for town and district centre businesses.”

For the Amendment 29, against 9,

AMENDMENT CARRIED.

The amendment was then put as the substantive motion and it was

RESOLVED – (28 for, 23 against) - This Council Meeting recognises the Greater Manchester Business Survey’s findings that more businesses are satisfied (and fewer are dissatisfied) with the availability of parking in Stockport than across Greater Manchester.

This Council Meeting notes:

• that the Survey makes no reference whatsoever to parking charges; and
• the incorrect reference to parking charges contained in the resume of the Stockport Economic Alliance Task Force meeting in February that was considered by the Environment and Economy Scrutiny Committee on 21^st March 2013.

This Council Meeting regrets that this mistake was repeated in the original version of this motion.

This Council Meeting welcomes the Concluding Report of the GM Town Centres Project, considered by the GM Combined Authority on 11^th March 2013 which highlights car parking across Greater Manchester as “a common issue with different responses in different town centres”.

This Council Meeting further notes that the Concluding Report observes that “Reliable evidence on the impact and importance of free parking/reduced fees, and any measurable benefits to town centre businesses, needs to be collected by Districts and shared”, which will “enable individual Districts to make more informed decisions locally”.

This Council Meeting therefore resolves to continue to participate fully with  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.(ii)

This Council Meeting welcomes the cross-party support for the implementation of a Local Authority Mortgage Scheme in Stockport.

This Council Meeting notes with regret the previous Labour Government’s shocking record on house-building which saw levels fall to the lowest level since the end of the Second World War.

Further regrets that the annual average number of homes built in the social sector under the previous Labour Government was less than half the annual average built under the previous Conservative Government.

Notes with concern the falling forecast of affordable new build properties in Stockport, a social housing waiting list in excess of 7,000 and a prohibitively high average property price.

Recognises the efforts that have been made to address these problems; with schemes in place in Brinnington, Reddish and at Covent Garden, and the continuing Affordable Homes Development with Stockport Homes.

Welcomes the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Budget proposals to alleviate the Government’s inherited housing crisis by:

·           Doubling the existing affordable homes guarantee from £225m to £450m to secure an extra 15,000 homes by 2015

·           Increasing funding for the Build to Rent project from £200m to £1bn

·           Investing £3.5bn in the Help to Buy scheme for loans to buy newly built properties

·           Extension of the NewBuy Guarantee to underwrite £130bn worth of new mortgages

Urges the Council Executive to make use of these Government initiatives where possible, and to make the easing of our local housing shortage a key priority.

Moved by:                  Councillor Syd Lloyd

Seconded by:           Councillor John Smith

MOVED AND SECONDED - This Council Meeting welcomes the cross-party support for the implementation of a Local Authority Mortgage Scheme in Stockport.

This Council Meeting notes with regret the previous Labour Government’s shocking record on house-building which saw levels fall to the lowest level since the end of the Second World War.

Further regrets that the annual average number of homes built in the social sector under the previous Labour Government was less than half the annual average built under the previous Conservative Government.

Notes with concern the falling forecast of affordable new build properties in Stockport, a social housing waiting list in excess of 7,000 and a prohibitively high average property price.

Recognises the efforts that have been made to address these problems; with schemes in place in Brinnington, Reddish and at Covent Garden, and the continuing Affordable Homes Development with Stockport Homes.

Welcomes the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Budget proposals to alleviate the Government’s inherited housing crisis by:

·         Doubling the existing affordable homes guarantee from £225m to £450m to secure an extra 15,000 homes by 2015

·         Increasing funding for the Build to Rent project from £200m to £1bn

·         Investing £3.5bn in the Help to Buy scheme for loans to buy newly built properties

·         Extension of the NewBuy Guarantee to underwrite £130bn worth of new mortgages

Urges the Council Executive to make use of these Government initiatives where possible, and to make the easing of our local housing shortage a key priority.

At this stage in the proceedings (10.00 pm) the Mayor informed the Council Meeting that the provisions of Council Meeting Procedure Rule 9.1 (Duration of Meeting) would be invoked unless the Council Meeting wished the meeting to continue.

It was then

RESOLVED – That the provision of Council Meeting Procedure Rule 9.1 (Duration of Meeting) be not invoked and that the Council Meeting continues.

AMENDMENT MOVED AND SECONDED - Delete paragraph 2 and 3.

Insert after first paragraph –

“This Council Meeting notes that the Lib Dem and Tory Government has cut the budget for new affordable homes by 60% since taking office and housing starts have been lower in every quarter since the 2010 General Election.

This Council Meeting notes that Labour delivered 256,000 additional affordable homes in its last 5 years in office - over a third more new homes than this Government thus far has said it will provide in the next five years. In addition, thanks to the Labour Government’s Decent Homes Programme, the number of social rented homes in a poor condition fell by 75%.

Insert ‘Woodford’ in paragraph 5 after ‘with schemes in place in’.

Delete paragraph 6 and subsequent bullet points.

Insert after paragraph 5 –

“This Council notes with concern the decision by the Department for Communities and Local Government to prevent local councils from accessing the Homes and Communities Agency’s Affordable Homes Guarantee Programme.  This Council further notes the damning comments of the Treasury Select Committee about the Government’s housing initiatives announced in the Budget.

Delete ‘these Government’ from final paragraph and replace with ‘all’ after ‘Urges the Council Executive to make use of’.”

For the amendment 21, against 37

AMENDMENT NOT CARRIED

FURTHER AMENDMENT MOVED AND SECONDED - Include the first paragraph: “This Council Meeting welcomes the cross-party support for the implementation of a Local Authority Mortgage Scheme in Stockport.”

Delete all after the first paragraph.

Insert the following text:

“This Council Meeting notes

·         that the housing market is complex and that the current shortage of housing in the social sector is a result of the choices made by previous governments;

·         the high priority the Executive gives to developing affordable housing which has resulted in Stockport consistently outperforming other local authorities in the North West, both in terms of funding gained and affordable housing delivered;

·         that our affordable housing delivery has seen increased delivery over recent years but dipped slightly in 2012/13 due to factors outside the Council’s control, including a delay to a complex scheme and an arson attack on a major site;

·         that a number of previously stalled sites are now coming forward and that recent Executive decisions are facilitating significant new delivery in Brinnington, Covent Garden Village and Offerton.

This Council Meeting

·         welcomes the announcement by the Chancellor of the Exchequer of further monies to support housing development, but

·         notes that the Executive would be unable to “make use” of the Build to Rent, Help to Buy and NewBuy guarantee schemes directly, as they all relate exclusively to private sector development; however

·         notes that the Executive will continue to work with private sector developers and partner registered providers where possible to maximise the use of benefit of these schemes for Stockport.

This Council Meeting notes the success of our participation in the 2011-15 Affordable Homes Programme, through Stockport Homes, where we met all of our delivery targets and exceeded them in relation to the delivery of larger homes

This Council Meeting therefore regrets that the government has now chosen to specifically exclude Local Authorities and their Arms-Length Management Organisations from bidding for funds under the Affordable Homes Guarantees programme, making bids “only open to those classified to the private sector”, i.e. independent Housing Associations.

This Council Meeting notes that responsibility for administering this scheme in London rests with the Mayor and that, whilst he is generally expected to apply criteria broadly in line with those applied elsewhere by the Homes and Communities Agency, in this instance Boris Johnson is allowing Local Authorities to continue to participate.

This Council meeting therefore resolves to ask the Chief Executive to write to:

·         the Rt Hon Eric Pickles MP, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, and Mark Prisk MP, the Minister of State for Housing and Local Government, to seek removal of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

To consider a report of the Monitoring Officer.  

The Deputy Leader of the Council and Executive Councillor (Governance and Corporate Services) (Councillor Martin Candler) submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) detailing a number of proposed amendments to the Council’s Constitution and proposed changes to the Contract Procedure Rules.

RESOLVED – (1) That the proposed amendments to the Constitution as detailed in the schedule attached to the report, and those recommended by the Constitution Working Party, be adopted.

(2) That the Monitoring Officer be authorised to make any future minor typographical corrections, title changes and renumbering of sections in the Constitution, subject to any such changes being reported on a regular basis to members of the Corporate, Resource Management and Governance Scrutiny Committee and Executive Councillors.

(3) That the proposed amendments to the Contract Procedure Rules, including those recommended by the Constitution Working Party, be adopted, subject to the Monitoring Officer, in consultation with the Executive Councillor (Governance & Corporate Services), being authorised to make any further changes to the Contract Procedure Rules to implement the wishes of the Constitution Working Party as identified in paragraph 2.7 of the report.

To consider a report of the Chief Executive and Monitoring Officer.

The Deputy Leader of the Council and Executive Councillor (Governance and Corporate Services) (Councillor Martin Candler) submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) requesting the Council Meeting to consider a number of amendments proposed to the Council Meeting Procedure Rules (PR1 in the Constitution).

RESOLVED - (1) That with immediate effect, the proposed amendments to the Council Meeting Procedure Rules as set out in this report, be adopted.

(2) That the Monitoring Officer be requested to finalise the detailed drafting of the revisions referred to in resolution (1) above for inclusion in the updated Constitution.